EPA To Cleanup Contaminated Yards In Sunland Park

SUNLAND PARK, N.M. (AP) – Soil from nearly two dozen yards in the Sunland Park area will be removed and replaced because of elevated levels of arsenic and lead.

The Environmental Protection Agency will oversee the project, which is expected to begin in August. It will be paid for by a fund set up by Arizona mining company ASARCO. The company used to operate a copper smelter in nearby El Paso and has asked Texas regulators for permission to resume operations.

The New Mexico Environment Department has opposed the renewal of a permit for ASARCO.

The department says emissions during the smelter’s previous operations created arsenic and lead soil contamination that posed public health concerns in Sunland Park and other New Mexico communities.

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